For our business, we have three primary platforms where we engage with customers: a website, a Facebook Business Page and an Instagram account.

We’re small shop owners like you so I want to be transparent and give you an idea of our numbers—we have 522 email subscribers via our website, almost 4K followers on Facebook and about 3K on Instagram. See, we’re not talking 10k or 20k+ followers.

From day one our growth has been organic. You can tell by our numbers we haven’t paid for followers, but we post on social media consistently, which is key.

I will also say that over the past few years, I made efforts to improve or update each platform.

I updated and redesigned our website on several occasions, making it better and more informative for our customers each year.

I have made the most of our Facebook page by utilizing all of the areas where we can supply information about our business.

I also upgraded to Instagram’s business account as soon as it became available.

In this series, I want to focus on our Facebook Page vs. our website.

So let’s compare:

Reach.

Website: Each time we write a blog post, an email gets sent to our subscriber list; I publish 2-4 emails—per month.

Facebook: We post on Facebook once a day, sometimes twice—the reach is daily.

Views.

Website: We get approximately 1200 page views per week

Facebook: We reach approximately 2200 people per week

Messaging.

Website: We have a contact form on our website; we tend to receive on average 8 emails per month.

Facebook: Most of our customers will spot us in their Facebook feed. Facebook Messenger is convenient for them. We receive 5-8 messages per week.

Event information.

Website: We have a page for our workshops and events on our website. Customers can register and pay for the event there. So the value is in the customer actually purchasing the item directly on our website. But we don’t have many organic views of our page; where someone finds our website and clicks on the”Workshop” page. Most often they are directed from our Facebook page.

Facebook: Events have been pivotal for us on Facebook and this is why:

Once I create an event on our page the event starts to reach some of our followers.

The customer can click on “interested” or “going” for the event.

Each time someone marks “interested” or “going,” Facebook shares that information in their friends’ news feeds too. Bonus.

Each time we post in the discussion area of the event, the person who marked “interested or going” gets notified. The value of this is priceless because it serves as a reminder to the customer to either register or that the event is coming up soon.

I can place an ad for a reasonable price ($30 or less). This usually results in much more exposure and even better turnout at our in-store events.

Cost:

Website: Over the years, I’ve probably spent $300-$500 on our websites and countless hours because I’m self-taught on WordPress, but I know of small businesses that have spent thousands on their websites.

Facebook: FREE. Yes, I have paid for Facebook ads – mostly targeting people to attend our workshops and events, which I’ll address in future articles, but a Facebook business page is free and that can’t be beat!

So why am I saying all of this?

The reality is, Facebook has 1.8 billion users worldwide. Users spend an average of 20 minutes each time they visit Facebook. They tend to check in on their Facebook account at least 5 times a day. 79% of the online adult population, our target market, has a Facebook account.

Don’t get me wrong, I completely value our website, but Facebook stats and numbers can’t be denied. The exposure is too good to pass up even if you don’t pay to advertise. However, Facebook ads make our page even more valuable. The ROI is completely worth it. But, that’s for another post coming soon.

Take a little time to see where YOUR traffic comes from. The results may be different for you, but you won’t know until you look.

The key to the relationship between your social media accounts and your website is to make sure they are all intertwined. They should all in some way or another link back to each other. This is how you get the most and best exposure!

I’d love to know what you think about this? What do you feel about your Facebook Page? Does Facebook stump you? Are you a Facebook Ninja? Comment below or send me an email.

Next post, I will share how to make the most of your Facebook business page. I’ll include a printable checklist that will let you tackle each topic one at a time and not be overwhelmed by the process.

If you are looking to be a savvy shopkeeper, this is the place for you.